Iowa Almanac for Tuesday, April 23, 2024
"America's Premier Fashion Designer"
Roy Frowick was born on April 23rd, 1932 in Des Moines. His father was an accountant, and his mother raised the family. Roy developed an interest in sewing from his grandmother, and began creating hats and altering clothes for his mother and sister while he was still a boy.
The Frowick family moved to Indiana when Roy was 10 years of age. By the time he was 20, he had moved to Chicago, taking night classes at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and working as a store window dresser. In 1953, he opened his own hat business; his first customer was another Iowa native, actress and comedian Fran Allison.
A few years later, Roy Frowick opened a new store on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and began using his middle name professionally. As a boy, family members had often called him by his middle name of Halston to avoid confusion between him and an uncle named Roy…now, the world would know him by that name.
Halston received great attention as the designer of the famous pillbox hat that Jacqueline Kennedy wore to her husband’s inauguration in 1961. He branched out to design a full line of women’s clothing later that decade. He attracted celebrity clients including Lauren Bacall, Elizabeth Taylor, Bianca Jagger and Liza Minnelli.
His bold designs included the halter top dress, and his use of a variety of unique fabrics also set his designs apart. By 1975, there was a fragrance line bearing his name that generated $85 million in sales in just two years. He designed the U.S. Olympic team’s uniforms in 1976, as well as uniforms for the Girl Scouts, the New York City police department, Avis Rent a Car, and Braniff Airways.
He became a fixture of the Manhattan club scene, including the Studio 54 disco. But that lifestyle led to his downfall, as did a drug habit. He died of lung cancer and complications of AIDS in 1990, a month shy of his 58th birthday.
Newsweek magazine once called him the premier fashion designer of all America…Roy Halston Frowick, known to the world as Halston, born in Des Moines on this date in 1932.
And that's Iowa Almanac for April 23rd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"America's Premier Fashion Designer"
Roy Frowick was born on April 23rd, 1932 in Des Moines. His father was an accountant, and his mother raised the family. Roy developed an interest in sewing from his grandmother, and began creating hats and altering clothes for his mother and sister while he was still a boy.
The Frowick family moved to Indiana when Roy was 10 years of age. By the time he was 20, he had moved to Chicago, taking night classes at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and working as a store window dresser. In 1953, he opened his own hat business; his first customer was another Iowa native, actress and comedian Fran Allison.
A few years later, Roy Frowick opened a new store on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and began using his middle name professionally. As a boy, family members had often called him by his middle name of Halston to avoid confusion between him and an uncle named Roy…now, the world would know him by that name.
Halston received great attention as the designer of the famous pillbox hat that Jacqueline Kennedy wore to her husband’s inauguration in 1961. He branched out to design a full line of women’s clothing later that decade. He attracted celebrity clients including Lauren Bacall, Elizabeth Taylor, Bianca Jagger and Liza Minnelli.
His bold designs included the halter top dress, and his use of a variety of unique fabrics also set his designs apart. By 1975, there was a fragrance line bearing his name that generated $85 million in sales in just two years. He designed the U.S. Olympic team’s uniforms in 1976, as well as uniforms for the Girl Scouts, the New York City police department, Avis Rent a Car, and Braniff Airways.
He became a fixture of the Manhattan club scene, including the Studio 54 disco. But that lifestyle led to his downfall, as did a drug habit. He died of lung cancer and complications of AIDS in 1990, a month shy of his 58th birthday.
Newsweek magazine once called him the premier fashion designer of all America…Roy Halston Frowick, known to the world as Halston, born in Des Moines on this date in 1932.
And that's Iowa Almanac for April 23rd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
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No use of the material is allowed without prior written permission of the copyright holder.
Copyright 2024 by Stein Enterprises, L.L.C.